


House of Clones

by AwkwardDuckProducktions



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: :3c, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst and Feels, CC-2224 | Cody Needs a Hug, CT-27-5555 | Fives | ARC-5555 Lives, CT-27-5555 | Fives | ARC-5555 Needs a Hug, CT-6116 | Kix is So Done, CT-7567 | Rex Needs a Hug, Clones are family, Fives is not doing great, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, I have proof that I am an evil writer so be warned, I'm a clones stan first human second, Mentions of Anakin, Non-Consensual Drug Use, Planet Mandalore (Star Wars), Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Protective CC-2224 | Cody, Protective CT-7567 | Rex, Sorry Not Sorry, Suicidal Thoughts, bastard cody is the only valid cody, clones are Mandalorians, cody needs a drink, excessive use of oldest sibling rights, meaning that off the battlefield is fucking fair game and i aim to win, mention of drug use, mentions of Obi-wan - Freeform, more tags to come, nothing good ever happens to clones, post-episode: s06e4, pranks gone wrong, protective CT-5597 Jesse, rex said they are programmed for processing battlefield stressors, star wars should use the fact that technically non force sensitive can affect the force, that is the hill I will die on, tup is still dead
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-23
Updated: 2021-01-25
Packaged: 2021-03-08 19:36:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 12,242
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27161911
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AwkwardDuckProducktions/pseuds/AwkwardDuckProducktions
Summary: Fives was sure he was dead as he was sure that the jedi would be soon.Rex refuses to accept that.But if they're going to be able to do anything, they need to get help. And as much as loyalty and brotherhood is written into their DNA, so is one other thing. Force, luck, and little gods alike owe them that much. That they are undeniably...
Relationships: Boil & CC-2224 | Cody, Boil & Waxer (Star Wars), CC-2224 | Cody & CT-7567 | Rex, CT-27-5555 | Fives | ARC-5555 & CT-7567 | Rex, CT-5597 | Jesse & CT-7567 | Rex, ahsoka being honorary sibling, clones being brothers - Relationship
Comments: 73
Kudos: 99





	1. Chapter 1

The lower levels of Coruscant never truly tasted the rain. What flowed down was tainted and poisoned by the levels that ruled above. What dripped down had to be cleansed to be passable as safe for any life, yet it seeped in the walls, trickled from the ceilings, and weighed down everyone’s shoes. No one up above cared for the Lower Levels, which is why Fives chose it as the place for his meeting. Even with whatever that Kamonian inserted into his bloodstream, he still knew where it would be safe for him to make his plea. His vision swam in the rapid currents of his own paranoia as he hid in the dark. Thoughts of the last... well... to be honest, time was getting a bit funny. Whether it had been days, or decades, or just mere minutes since he last saw what could be his savoir or his executioner was lost to him. All Fives knew he needed to tell _someone._

Rex stepped carefully through the alleys of the Lower Levels. He was familiar where his men went when they came to this planet. There had been times where he considered to seek the same temporary freedom from the war he was made for. Never did he partake, every time he got desperate enough he would find a _vod_ and bring him back up to the top. Whether for his brother’s sake or for his own desire to not be alone in this hell, it was tough to say. So when he got the message that one needed him, one who left just mere days ago for what should have been an easy trip back to their sight of creation, Rex couldn’t find it in himself to trust anyone but himself to bring this brother to light.

“S-stop right there!” Rex felt himself seized and relaxed at the sound of the demand.

“Fives?” He knew it sounded like him, but he needed to hear him say it.

“Are you-you alone?” The voice asked, the forgotten crates reverbated the question, he could be anywhere.

“I am.” Rex promised. “And I am unarmed.” Which was true, he didn’t bring his blasters. The two were left a bit shallower into the alley, hidden but there just in case. “You said you wanted to talk. I want to see you first.”

A dry mirthless laugh huffed and puffed its way through the maze of crates. Only to give way to struggling gasps and then silence. Rex didn’t know which was worse. Too often he had found fellow brothers left hollow and empty. Scooped out what little joy they had to give to this endless war. Each time he heard news of another one gone, Rex found his mind drifting back to the one that got away. Did he know his brothers were still dying? Did he know the anger he lit with hospitality and hope of a life outside in Rex? On the darkest of nights, he could admit he envied him. But there would always be another brother in need. And so he stayed.

“Fives?”

“I- It’s-” His stammering fell way to mumbling. Each second introduced a new nightmare to Rex. That he wouldn’t be able to save him, no matter how hard he tried. “Rex, I- we’re not- Tup’s dead.”

“I know. They told me right before you got here.”

“It’s- We-” Distant sirens wailed. The two held their position still and careful. And distant sirens sailed right on by. “You said- you said you came alone.”

“I did. They’re still looking for you, you know.” Of course he knew, that was why he chose such a place to meet.

“Are you- I didn’t try- the Chancellor lies.”

“I believe you.” _Believe in me_ was left unsaid. But the same punch of a laugh meant Fives heard it all the same.

“He.. I- I didn’t- We’re doomed.”

“I know.”

“No you don’t!” The shout made Rex’s eyebrows furrow. How painful for their roles to be switched. He would give anything to make Fives laugh- really laugh with every fiber of him- right now. “Rex...” Was Fives pleading with him? A knot as tight as bonds twisted itself in his stomach, crawling its horrid way up. “They’re gonna- they’re gonna kill me.”

And at that, Rex finally understood why nat-borns were so... horrified by their actual age. Fives sounded every bit the child he was.

“I- I learned something. And I- I need you to-”

“-Fives, come out from the shadows.” He didn’t mean to beg. But Rex needed to see him. Even if their faces matched, he needed to see his little brother.

A careful shuffle from ahead and out Fives came following Rex’s order. His skin pale and taut with a quiver to his mouth and added fear to his eyes. He hardly looked like the man Rex let follow to Kamino. But it was still him. And the confirmation was enough to bring a small smile on Rex’s face.

“Rex, we’re- we’re- the war is a-a lie.” Tear tracks stained his face but Fives had nothing left in him to cry with. “I- We _all_ have- have chips in our brains.” Shaky breaths paused his explanation, his hands tapped in a frantic pattern against his thigh. “We’re- We’re going to kill- kill-” Sirens much closer grew closer still. Fives’ attention focused in, falling quiet like a loth cat on the hunt.

“Tell me and I will get you out of here.” Rex knew that was a big promise, and a bigger danger. But even if he can’t save all his brothers, he needed to save just this one. With his life, if it came to it.

“We- we were made to- to- kill the Jedi.” Fives had no tears to shed, so the skies and the poison and the disgust of the capital lent him more.

_Ah._

“We- the- the clones all have chips- in-in our heads- I have mine!” And pulled from a secret place in his gloves, Fives held a small rectangular chip in his shaking hands. “Tup’s mal-mal- broke down and-and- it’s why-”

“-he killed the general.” Rex saved him from saying it, to which Fives nodded. The runoff from the Upper Levels soaked their boots as the truth settled in their minds.

“They’re going- going t-t-to kill me.” Fives could barely hold himself together anymore. Weary and young, as they all were.

“Not if I have anything to say about it.” It came as a whisper, but with the power of a whole army.

* * *

It paid to have the reputation of dragging tired brothers back to barracks. None batted an eye when Rex dragged another one under his arm. How lucky he didn’t even need to open his mouth to explain why his rescuee wore his helmet, what half formed half-truths would have given his plan straight to the trash. They knew better than to ask, for when the time came for them to be rescued, each  _ vod _ shared the same sentiment of not wanting to answer.

Save one.

“Rex, where are you going?” And whatever luck or goodwill the Force had for him and maybe all clones vanished as Cody stopped him in the empty hallway.

“ _Toooo_ get this shiny cleaned up.” He smiled sheepishly at his older brother. “He’s really embarrassed- reason why he’s wearing my helmet.” Rex had practiced the lie on their way to the barracks, hoping he on some level could believe the words both Cody and himself were hearing coming from his mouth. Cody shifted, crossing his arms over his chest and cocking his head to the side.

“Aren’t you supposed to be helping in the search for Fives?”

“I was! Just...” Fives slipped in his grasp at the mention of his name. But Rex held him close, he had made a promise after all. “This one really needs my help. I am sure the Guards will be fine without me.” That was a truth. General Skywalker was going to regret the day of telling him about the wonders of half-truths.

“So you trust the Guards?” Cody asked almost innocently.

“And you don’t?” Rex asked in the same accusatory tone.

“If it was my man on the run, I figured I would try to get the answer straight from him first.” Cody walked closer, under Rex’s fingers he could feel Fives’ breathing starting to quicken. “It’s very odd, the whole situation. I would rather my man explain himself to someone he trusted so at least someone gets the full story.”

“I... He-” Rex sputtered like an old speeder. His older brother rolled his eyes and nodded to a storage closet.

“Get inside.”

Cody locked the door behind him as Rex set Fives down on a crate. He turned around, his careful neutral expression now darken. “You’re my brother and I love you, but you are a really bad liar.” Rex opened his mouth, trusting his subconscious to come up with a defense, but one look from Cody’s raging eyes promptly shut down any reason. “And you’re incredibly stupid.”

“You’re the first person to say anything.” Rex managed to mumble.

“Well it was either me or someone who was going to get you decommissioned once you opened your _kriffing_ mouth.” He rubbed his face and sighed. “You’re welcome by the way.”

“You’ve done nothing so far that I am grateful for.”

“I just got out of a meeting with General Windu and General Skywalker and you were headed straight for them.” Cody set his helmet on a crate by the door as he walked over to the curled up body of Fives’. “You’re welcome.” He reiterated. So carefully, he knelt in front of Fives, looking him over with a critical eye. Rex had to admit, that would have been very bad. The whole plan would be to potentially save the Jedi would crumble if he ran into one.

“Thanks.” He muttered as he took a seat next to Fives, who instantly melted into his side. Anxious fingers tapped on the crate in the same pattern from the alley.

“Rex, what even was your plan?”

“Sneak in, stuff him in a crate, get on a ship, stuff like that.” A heavy sigh sank the moment Cody heard that, along Rex assumed any respect he had for his younger brother.

“What did he tell you to make you want to risk decommissioning?” He looked up, the anger had given way to concern.

“In short?” Rex tried to come up with the words to explain. His own hearing of it was a mixture of jumbled jittery bursts of panic mixed with his own readiness to die in any sort of way. That last bit, he knew he didn’t want Cody to know about. “Fives found a chip in all our brains that will make us kill the Jedi.”

The silence sat on both of their shoulders, nothing but the fast fingers of Fives could be heard in their little room.

“I... Force, you’re not lying.”

“Who knew it would come in handy?” Rex joked a bit, unsurprised when it fell flat between them. Cody’s breath stuttered as the weight of the truth touched every part of his mind. Late nights between missions and cheap alcohol made it easy for Rex to understand why this news would hit Cody in such an awful way. How his general had become of that of a friend to Cody personally. How even in their darkest moments, they could find each other and know the day will come again. “Codes-”

“-I’m coming with you.” Not what he was expecting, but it gave him hope to hear. “I’m not- Let’s find a way to save the Jedi.” He stood up and reached out a hand for Rex.

“Like we always do.”

“Like we always _kriffing_ do.”

Between the two of them (Fives after spending who knows how long in a panicked state, started to fade), they managed to make Rex bareboned plan into something that could work, with the right help. If the right help was willing and not going to immediately report them. Both of their recommendations, they had trusted with their lives before. Just hopefully, they could trust them again.

Boil and Waxer came easily. A part of Cody beamed with pride when they agreed, knowing their loyalty to each other meant more to them than their loyalty to the Republic. A chance to free their brothers and to free themselves from the regime that would have seen them separated if not for both Cody’s and General Kenobi’s interference was a chance worth taking. And so they were placed in charge of grabbing the crate that held Fives.

Getting a ship would be harder. Reason why Rex went to Jesse. He had been tempted to go to Kix, but he rather those they would have to leave behind have him than just the planned six. They were taking a meddroid however, part of Cody’s part. They needed their own chips removed, especially since Rex was leaving Fives’ as a farewell present for his general.

Jesse was essential, however. He could actually lie, for starters. Rex appreciated and was equally annoyed by Jesse’s immediate trust in the wild truth, but it did get him on board. “Tup was my brother, and so is Fives. I may want the general to get a taste of his own consequences sometimes, but not like this.” Rex could almost laugh at that. Though his heart weighed heavy at the mention of the general, his thoughts going back to the message he left with the chip. The Force had never done anything good for him, but just this once he hoped that it would guide Skywalker to the truth.

Their impossible plan came together. Jesse secured the ship; Boil and Waxer got the crate; Cody got the meddroid; Rex got all of them together. And as the sun rose on the city of Coruscant, so did their ship as they blasted off with nothing but hope.

  
  



	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Six clones loose in space come up with a plan that none of them really like.

Cody wasn’t the biggest fan of anything medical. It was no secret he avoided the medic’s tent, only to be thrown over the shoulder of one of the trainees to everyone’s chagrin. Obi-Wan’s favorite thing to call him besides “Cody dear” was “hypocrite,” usually as he ushered (sacrificed) his general over to the medics, hiding behind the fact of Obi-Wan’s injuries so that he could make his escape. In those rare moments, the line between General and Commander faded away in step as they joked and winced at the injuries they would aggravate as they laughed. It had been his job to keep his general (friend? Obi-Wan hated when they were in informal company and Cody had the audacity to keep up formalities) alive. Cody could argue that he was still doing his job, as he ripped out anything that could be used to find them. He was going to get help. He was going to save his general, at least this one last time.

But being as he is oldest means that no one can make him go under the blade of the meddroid before anyone else and he was going to use that until the others all get their chips removed or they figure out time travel and lock his incubation tube until after they all are born so he becomes the youngest. That was just facts. Rex rolled his eyes at his stubbornness, going first after Fives helped the meddroid be able to locate the chips. To prove that it was fine, so he claimed. But when he took a bit longer to wake up than expected and the panic started to set into Cody’s chest, only for him to burst into laughter, he knew the real reason why. Boil and Waxer found his little prank funny, and somewhere, Cody had to laugh at his own dislike. Fives, however, found the whole situation quite triggering and Jesse had to remove him from the impromptu infirmary.

Fives was... doing badly. Rex explained what he knew but even then it was patchy. Cody had his own share of the causal disregard everyone treated the lives and deaths of the clones. He knew that both General Kenobi and General Skywalker were extreme outliers. But Fives still worked under Skywalker and Fives still came back... not himself. There can be good generals in shitty situations, doesn’t change the fact that the situation is still shitty.

Was this all mental justification for Cody’s betrayal? The hoops he would have to jump if he ran into his once maybe-friend? “Sorry for deserting you and my men, here’s why I am right.” That would be of course, if he didn’t immediately get run-through at first sight by the lightsaber that always seemed to fall into his hands. Their relationship may have been bordering somewhere close to actual friendship, but Cody was still a clone. And he has seen General Kenobi angry. Good generals were still generals.

He didn’t fully believe Obi-Wan would kill him immediately, but he liked to be prepared. At least then, maybe he could distract him enough for the others to escape. Cody figured that if the two generals came to retrieve them, at least there would be a chance Obi-Wan would hold his former pupil back from a murderous rampage for at least 30 seconds. Worst case scenario. The best case wasn’t even worth the time or energy to entertain. So worst case, Cody has thirty seconds to explain why he was right in deserting everything he knows.

Obi-Wan’s constant worry was starting to make sense.

Ugh.

“Cody.” A foot tapped his from where he laid underneath the control panel.

“I’m still not talking to you.”

“Now you’re just being excessive.” Rex kicked his foot again. “Also, it’s your turn.”

“I’m still in the middle of this.” That was not true, he had been lying there for the past ten minutes having fake arguments in his head. But unlike his cruel brother, Cody could lie.

“I’ll take over.”

“You’d mess everything up.” Rex couldn’t argue with that. Tech was never his strong suit. Many times both General Skywalker and Commander Tano kicked him out of the hangar claiming he was “tech-repellant.” Instead, Rex kicked his foot again. “How’s Fives doing?” Cody switched the topic, pretending to finish up the job.

“He’s asleep.” All joy gained by annoying his older brother vanished in the answer. “Got Jesse stuck with him, but... yeah, he’s asleep.” Cody peered out from under the control panel only to see Rex curled into himself.

“You didn’t know.”

He made a noncommittal hum. Better than him straight disagreeing with him, Cody relented in his mind. He knew better than to scold him for distressing Fives. Knew his own brain would do a worse job than Cody ever wanted to. 

“Alright, I’m done.” Cody pulled himself away from the safety of miming being busy. “Let’s... get this over with.” In his hesitation, Rex grabbed the sleeve of his blacks and dragged him away before he could try to escape.

Jesse was left pinned under a worn out Fives, who slept with his face pressed into his neck. His hands clutched at the shirt, as if to ensure not another brother would leave. Not that Jesse wanted to leave him any time soon. Ever since they pulled him from the crate, he knew that Fives had gone through hell. Rex had been the one to carefully wake him, sat in a far corner away as he eased the remaining panic away. Jesse stayed close by, ready for any way to help.

No one really knew what happened on Kamino besides what little Fives gave them. Fives figured out the truth behind the chips, how exactly wasn’t clear. Tup was dead, how exactly wasn’t clear either. Jesse could only begin to guess with his reaction to Rex’s prank. Not that he wanted to. It would be Fives’ choice to say anything about his time with the longneck bastards. He didn’t need to know to care.

But Jesse knew that six clones floating around in a stolen spaceship was going to attract attention. Even with their hijacking to make it untraceable. How long until some new horror came along? Especially with high profile clones like Rex and Cody, Jesse was sure that they would make someone a pretty credit on the slavers’ market. The thought chilled his veins, stifling the stutter in his breath as to not wake Fives.

Some of the other clones had plans for after the war. Either settling down on a tropical planet, charting the stars, or something as simple as opening a restaurant, they had dreams. Jesse... technically had a dream. A recurring one. A reminder that he shouldn’t hope to be anymore than the slave they all were. With all the secrets they already knew about the Republic- being as generals would talk and clones would overhear and they would talk- he often dreamt of a blaster in his mouth after the war. If he survived that long. All Jesse wanted was to go out by his own hands rather than wait for all of them to be decommissioned.

He hated to be right. With his hand buried in the short hair on Fives’ head, he knew he was right. What little Rex shared with him back on Coruscant proved all his worst fears much too kind. He never had much hope for those around him and with the living proof lying on him that their entire existence was a lie, never had he wanted more to put a blaster in his mouth.

But he was a clone, a living breathing clone. Who did what some considered to be the impossible. And maybe in his acceptance that nothing matters, or in the hopes that General Skywalker’s extremely good luck had rubbed off on him, an idea came to him. They needed a plan. They needed to get help. And Jesse just might have one.

“Being around Skywalker does cause brain damage, who knew?” Cody muttered, his eyes half closed from the bright lights of their tiny dining room. A mess table with benches for seats took most of the space despite its small size, leaving Rex and Boil to stand. Fives munched on a ration bar, eyes focused on the center of the table.

“Do you have a better idea then, Codes?” Rex retaliated.

“Give me a chance to sleep off  _ kriffing  _ brain surgery,  _ di’kut. _ ”

“Should have gone sooner.” Only half a rotation out of the crushing grasp of the Republic and they were already bickering.

“It’s crazy, yes.” Jesse jumped back in before the two started throwing punches. “But even if the best possible outcome doesn’t happen, the publicity of it would force people to have uncomfortable talks about the clones.”

“And worst case, they shoot us out of the sky.” Waxer pointed out, a hand rested on his commander’s neck. “Be a quick death, at least?”

“We’re still in a Republic ship.”

“A  _ stolen _ Republic ship.” From the corner, Boil reminded.

“They don’t know that and no one would expect us to go there because it is a crazy idea so they wouldn’t think to warn them.” Pride swelled a bit in Rex as Jesse defended his, quite honestly stupid, idea. They’ve survived worse, which is not a statement made lightly. “It would be a political nightmare to not listen to us.” 

“Who would be talking for us?” Cody asked, refusing to lift his head. When the silence made the answer obvious, he let out a groan that bordered a scream.

“You did hang out with Kenobi a lot.” Rex poked. A dark stare met his half grin from across the table. “Surely he taught you a few things.”

Another groan escaped Cody. His former general did teach him a few things about negotiating. Many things, in fact. Between bedside stitching of wounds and shared bottles of whiskey, his stories were laced with tips and tricks Cody never thought were going to be relevant to him. Not everyone would listen to a clone like him like Obi-Wan did.

"Couldn't we just fly around, look for jobs?” Boil asked.

“We have no credits to our names.” An awful reminder Rex brought up. No matter how good they were, they weren’t paid in credit. Promises of a fund being set up for them for after the war does little to pay for fuel now.

“I’m in.” Waxer removed his hand before Cody could slap it away. When his hand was met with nothing, Cody slapped his shoulder instead blindly.

“I’m with you, Jesse.” Rex patted his shoulder, a smile that couldn’t be resisted hung on Jesse’s face. “I’ve agreed to worse. This at least has a seventy percent chance of being somewhat agreeable.”

“That sounds too high.” Boil set his canteen down on the table by Cody, who only pushed it away. Bright lights and the turmoil in his stomach refused to settle, the idea of drinking made his head spin. “I give it fifty-eight percent at most.”

“Thanks for your confidence.” Jesse snarked back. 

“That wasn’t me saying I’m not in. That was me saying I will be pleasantly surprised if we get out of it alive.” 

“I’m in, Jesse.” Fives smiled at him. Like sunshine after a fire, Jesse hadn’t realized he missed that smile behind the thick black smoke that followed Fives around.

“Cody,” everyone looked to the suffering commander, “it’s your turn.” Cody looked up at all his traitorous little brothers, going from oldest to youngest. He forced the lump in his throat back down, refusing to cry in front of them. Not one bit of him believed in any part of this plan. Too many times, he had seen his brothers die and die again. All he could see was them in a bloodied and dying, how much that was from the migraine was only minimal compared to his fears.

“I hate all of you,” but like all terrible plans, it was the only one they got. “I’m in.”

They cheered as Cody’s head fell back onto the table.

They had done the near impossible once. Maybe luck, the Force, and little gods would help them do it again.


	3. Chapter 3

So when they crashed into the woods of Mandalore, each of the clones lost faith in luck, the Force, little gods, and their terrible plan all at once. Their ship was destroyed, meeting its end against a mountain side that stopped their sliding. Not that anyone had brought anything besides their armor with them. Just as they managed to pull the last of one out did the Mandalorian guards surround them. Cody gave his brothers a withering glance, before putting up his hands and saying “We wish to speak to the Mand'alor.”

Though none of the six expected a warm welcome, Cody was a bit angered by the excessive force the Mandalore Guards used. They crashed a ship and came out with their hands empty. To be an even smaller threat, they would need to remove all their limbs. He looked to Boil and couldn't help but to ache in sympathy as he watched his brother focus on breathing slowly through his migraine. At least he had Waxer, the presence alone had proven before to help.

His eyes shifted to Fives. Once a proud jokester now silent and still. Jesse fared about the same, carefully fixing his stare to the corner of the armored speeder they were tossed in. So quiet were the two, as if they were being sentenced to trial already. Where no clone has escaped decommissioning before.

Last, his eyes fell on Rex who sat across from him. He had one hand on Fives' back, the other on his knee. Mutterings were left to the wind like offerings. It would be pretty unheard of for clones to not believe in the Force. Their generals were users of the Force. That did not mean every clone trusted the Force- or even liked the Force. Cody certainly did not trust or like the Force. Rex however, he wasn't sure if he relied on the Force honestly or like an old speeder that was more electrical tape than metal. Just something to get through the day, no promises of anything else better.

But it was still worth trying for, that anything else better. Wasn't it? Was that not why they were acting on this hated plan? In a cruel way, Cody was envious of Rex. At least Rex had something to focus on besides everything that could go wrong. But he had to prepare himself. He was going to fight for their lives, not luck or the Force. Him.

With a steadying breath, Cody tried to find faith in himself.

For as cold as their introduction of Mandalore, nothing could prepare the six for the avoidant of warmth that was the throne room. Treated as if they were a shame, they were led in binders through back hallways and tunnels. The promise that no one would talk on the way there, but now they were coming to realize that it was a futile promise as nothing in them wanted to talk. Out of their depths didn’t even begin to describe the fears that rolled in each of their heads. With what little nerve they had left, they kept their heads high.

Cody was in front, he was the leader. The crazy enough one to ask to be taken to the Mand’alor. Boil was behind him, Waxer followed behind. The former 501st members trailed, Fives surrounded by Rex and Jesse. Eight guards flanked them, pushing them onward with their blasters’ noses. Had this been any other battle, Cody would have glanced back at Boil or Rex and started humming marching songs from being cadets. A sign of confidence in hopes of sharing it with them. But he found his tongue leaden and his gaze locked ahead. Still they marched into the throne room like good little soldiers.

The woman that sat on the throne, Cody noticed, looked like she wanted to be anywhere else. As if their existence alone kept her away from doing something worthwhile. Her red hair laid perfectly straight on her head, not one bit of her looked out of place beside the freezing anger in her eyes. She was both fire and ice. A death in either extreme. 

"I am Bo-Katan Kryze, the  _ Acting _ Mand'alor." She stood with immeasurable respect, and with a familiar sadness. "What can I possibly offer you six?" Cody recognized the last name, surprised by finding her here. He tried not to try to piece together what could have happened from when General Kenobi was last here and now where he stood. Mandalore was always a place of constant changing rulers, and he took the slight relief of it not being the Sith.

Not that there was no guarantee that she wouldn’t just straight out kill them.

But Cody could not let himself think like that.

"We ask for citizenship." Cody kept his voice clear and precise, in the same manner he had watched his general done before. Even as an uproar rose, he and his  _ vode _ stood their ground. With every insult thrown at them, they stood. The sitting lead raised a hand, her constituents settled in disgruntled murmurs.

"Why should Mandalore do such a thing? Are you not property of the Republic?" He remembered what Kenobi once said long ago, that people will use the anger of the beggars as justification. That the worst most hated thing Cody could do was to remain calm. Remain standing. Remain, despite everything.

"No life should be property. We are living, thinking, unique individuals with Mandalorian in us." Another uproar, much louder than before rose like a great flame. The other heads of the clans hurled every name under the bright star at them, at the clones, and at their  _ buir _ . Words Cody would agree with belonging to the one they came from, but that was only for his brothers to hear. She raised a hand again.

"You left your war- your 'brothers' you claim to care about- why?"

"The war is a lie. We were-" ( _ you mustn't falter now _ ,  _ Cody _ . A voice like Kenobi reminded him gently,  _ your words and your silence are both indications of you. _ ) "-commissioned with a chip in our brains. Our brother Fives took the great risk of finding out what those chips did after we lost Tup."

Someone in the stands made the astute observation that those weren't even real names. There was laughter in that corner. "Before we came here, we removed those chips from our brains. They're-" ( _ you are doing so well, Cody. _ The Kenobi-like voice spoke gently to him, like the real one had on nights they found themselves in each other's arms.  _ Your beginning might be a tragedy, but that doesn't mean you have to be. _ ) "-Our brother Tup, his chip malfunctioned and caused him to not act like himself. He died at the hands of the Kamonians in order to protect their secret." Kenobi made this look easy. He knew that once behind closed doors, Kenobi would fall apart. The tapping on glass was bound to shatter it at some point. Cody wondered how he did this- talking, begging, being humiliated- knowing he could simply decimate those who opposed him. Jedi talked so much of control and peace- things he believed in, but in this moment, Cody was a little more understanding of Siths.

Someone from the stand called them deserters. There was agreement in that corner. There was anger in Cody's heart.

"We left because we are loyal!" ( _ Cody dear, you must control your anger. _ Kenobi-like voice chided.

_ But. I. Am. Not. You. _ He replied.) "We left because the commissioner of the clones is the Sith Lord the Republic fights!" There were no shouts. No name-calling. No jokes. For once, the throne room was silent.

Except for Rex behind him, whispering softly to someone. He knew it was Fives, the quickened breath and rhythmic tapping gave it away. ( _ Oh dear. _ ) Cody needed to get them out of here. 

"I can give you the full-"

"-That is a pretty big accusation." The head leaned back on her throne, interlocking her fingers over her knee. "What is your proof?"

"Five removed chips and Fives' own words." Behind him, he dared not look but he could hear the tapping getting more and more erratic. "Which he would be able to give at a later time." ( _ Cody Cody Cody, what have you gotten yourself into _ ?

_ You're not here. You know  _ nothing  _ about this. _ ) "I am willing to hand over the chips now, in exchange that we might have a place to stay momentarily until we can prove what we say is true. Have your splicers undo the coding." He could barely hear Fives breathe, having it gone high and shallow. "My  _ vode _ and I need rest, at the end of the day, we're still humans."

Someone from the stands made a mistake of a remark on the state of Fives. Rex continued whispering, his whole attention focused on his little brother. There was laughter from that corner. There were tears behind him as Fives fell deeper into his panic. There was pain only felt under a boot in Cody's chest.

"Why should we risk our neutrality for you?" She asked, unperturbed by everything around her.

"Because if the Republic falls, something worse will replace it. By granting us citizenship, we will fight for Mandalore-"

"-just as you fought for and abandoned the Republic?" And Cody couldn't respond. Each second was important and he let them slip through his teeth. One response was all he could think of.

_ Did you not leave your sister in hopes of saving your people? Are we not of the same reason? _

Satisfying? Like a four course meal. Only to be wearing it when they beat him up for such remarks. 

So he said nothing. And the Acting Mand'alor Kryze misread his silence for shame.

"You'll be staying in our cells until we can prove your accusations." The other members jeered as the guards closed around them. Cody closed his eyes, unable to ignore every insult thrown at them anymore. He had failed.

He had failed.

( _ Oh dear. Seems you didn't listen hard enough. You weren't good enough.  _ The voice like his general was all here could hear as they were escorted out of the throne room- away from those fiery frozen eyes of Bo-Katan Kryze.  _ You couldn't save yourself, how did you possibly expect to save me? _ )

Rex truly was surprised they were even alive. Not that it was a disaster (it was, but not as bad as he thought), but any hope he had was the same frantic hope he saved for desperate times working with Skywalker. He would thank the Force, if he hadn't been separated from everyone but Jesse. Left to rot in these cells until who knows how long. Still better than killing Skywalker, he reasoned with a grimace.

Ever since leaving the throne room, Cody remained silent. Even as they shoved him into the cell to the right of Jesse and Rex. No sarcastic remarks or teases, just an accepted silence Rex hated seeing in his older brother.

To his left was Fives.

_ Kark _ the Force for leaving Fives by himself. Rex was only putting pieces together about all that happened on Kamino and from the way Fives held on tight to him- the way he would only seem to relax was when there was no chance of whoever was nearby ever being able to leave- he knew Fives, at the center of it all, blamed himself. Took the weight of Tup's death onto his own shoulders for reasons he could not control.

And from the way Fives screamed now in his lonely cell, it painted a picture Rex couldn't bear to see.

"Fives, we're here. We're here, Fives." Pressed against their shared wall, Rex called out for him. "It's just me and Jesse in this one but we're here." Yet still he screamed. Screamed and pounded on the wall. 

"Rex, we might need to just wait this one out." He knew Jesse was speaking sense. How many more times must he fail him, though. How many more times must he fail the 501st?

"I can't." As Fives screamed lost in a panic on the other side, Rex's heart did in unison. "I can't." And with that, his legs crumbled underneath him.

"Does it ever shut up?" One of the guards from across the walkway asked of his partner. The former captain felt the hand on his chest before even realizing he had stood. Jesse shook his head at him.

"Would have thought they'd build them with a mute button." The second guard mused with a slight laugh, "or a kill switch."

Captain no more, was all Rex’s mind could supply him. There were some benefits in being of a higher rank. And in a twisted way, there were some benefits in being no one. He could kill the guards if the option presented itself and not worry about any other consequence besides a swift death in return. But the hand on his chest pushed him back into reality. He wasn’t a no one. He was, at the very root of him, a brother.

And his younger brother  _ screamed _ on the other side of the wall as he had to sit there and  _ listen _ .

“Shut it, Tankbred!” The first guard shouted. The two stuck beside Fives both knew well how his flashbacks tended to cycle upon themselves. Each had held him screaming, held him crying, held him sleeping, held him fighting, telling him where he was and that he was safe. But there was nothing they could do to stop him, to shush him and let him know he wasn’t alone anymore.

Fives was at the mercy of the guards, neither Rex or Jesse could do anything to stop the second one from approaching his cell. “ _ Kriffing _ hell, this one is loud.” The guard said as they disappeared from out of view. Rex’s couldn’t help but to close his eyes, hating his thoughts betrayed him as his head was filled with Umbara and the Jedi favorite phrase:

_ Trust in the Force _ .

And then there was nothing from his cell. Both Rex and Jesse climbed to the edge of their shared cell to watch the guard leave. Their blasters were holstered still. In the long minutes the two waited, there was no clean up team.

But there was nothing from Fives' cell.

Rex made a mental check of the things in their own cell, pondering how someone might kill themselves with the resources around. Jesse pressed an ear to the wall, hoping for just a little sign of life. Both silently tried to prove to their own racing thoughts that they hadn't failed another one.

Then three bangs came from the wall between the brothers. Jesse copied the pattern immediately.

And the two waited.

Three knocks of the same pattern sounded off.

So Jesse replied in a similar manner, after learning from trying to befriend all the tookas they came across.

Three knocks.

_ Three knocks _ . 

Three knocks.

_ Three knocks.  _

Three knocks.

_ Three knocks.  _

"Got a feeling that this is gonna go on for a while." Jesse whispered after he knocked back.

"Do you want me to take over?"

"No, get some rest. I'll wake you when it's your turn." Jesse offered a smile. The Republic's symbol across his face never looked more painful. Rex remembered when he first got the tattoo done. How a sense of pride and loyalty eased all pain. Rex wasn't sure what he regretted more, asking him to come along- to leave behind everything he knew- or all the times they only nearly escaped death. The hesitation laid on his chest as he climbed onto the cot. A part of him, one that only started singing after Umbara- after Krell- rejoiced in the suffocation either way.

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There is a reason why Maul isn't there. I'm not ignoring it, just trust me. Mandalore isn't just gonna give up embarrassing information to just anyone- especially those who deserted their own family and army trying to claim they are citizens. Like gross. Yuck. And there's a reason Bo-Katan is on the throne and very adamant on the "Acting" part. Must be a stressful time for her, being in the room her sister died and Maul- very briefly- controlled Mandalore day in and day out. Surely that won't come into play later. 
> 
> If you wanna tell me your theories on where he might be, leave a comment. Like I know where this is gonna go, but I'm curious where y'all think this might go.


	4. Chapter 4

Boil didn't know how many days it had been. Judging by meals delivered and Waxer increasingly incessant need to get some sort of rise out of their commander (former commander? The secret laxness of their professionalism behind closed doors made defining who Cody was when he wasn't who he used to be very difficult), he could guess either five days or forty-five years. After the first day of their imprisonment, it became clear that neither Waxer, Boil, and assuming the entire GAR actually knew how to do  _ nothing _ . To have nothing to do.

The cell he shared with his Bonded measured 7 paces by 12 paces. Boil had checked it 56 times. Waxer could lie in his cot and still hold Boil's hand, if they felt the need to sleep in seperate cots. There was a solid comfort of spending nearly three years in war by someone's side that in a moment of forced stillness, they were still there. The guards at first would ridicule them, which soon gave way to sighs of jealousy- if Boil was one to write poetry.

It was nice that even in their freefall to a new life, they had something that could be envied. That as the two laid there, practically stacked on each other as they have for many nights in a place that couldn't care less about whether they lived or died, they still had something no one else had.

Some great  _ kriffing _ world they had if they envied prisoners.

"How much do you think they hate us now?" Boil whispered to the vague shape of Waxer. The question had tortured him since Day 1.

"Probably hasn't changed since we got here."

"Not the guards." Boil's heart bled in his ears as he forced himself to clarify "The 212th."

"Oh... a lot." Waxer wasted no time in his response.

"Really?"

"We deserted. We're also supposed to blast deserters on sight." Not that anyone did. They only met one before and told the deserter that they had a 10 minutes headstart to run and if neither Boil or Waxer could find them, their secret was safe. Truth be told in their lonely cell, the two didn't even try to look. Just silently wished the deserter a happy life. "But we did our part. There's no way news doesn't get out about us being here."

"So now we waste away in a cell." Boil could see the vague shape nod.

"It's definitely an outcome I didn't expect." Waxer huffed a laugh. "And I thought latrine duty was torture." Boil found himself chuckling along before the two slid into an uneasy silence.

"Remember that one time Kenobi handed us a snake on that relief mission?" The speckled creature easily found purchase in both of their hearts in a matter of minutes.

"Didn't he do that so we would just have something to do while we waited for pickup?"

"Bit that. Probably also to mess with Skywalker." Turned out the General of No Fear had one- snakes. The look on Skywalker's face was nearly worth getting choked by the gentle creature. The look on Ahsoka's face when she heard they nicknamed it Tiny Tano because it was small yet mighty was worth it however. A warm memory they held until the harsh cold of their cell forced them back into the present.

"Would you have hated me?" Waxer asked, the uncertainty in his voice Boil hated. "If I had left and not taken you with me?"

_ What sort of question was that _ , Boil wanted to ask. Wanted to take that uncertainty out of his throat and straggle it.

"I know you too well." Is what he managed to say. "If you left me behind, I know it's probably because you didn't want to admit..." ...  _ that there was no point in hoping, _ was left unsaid. "I wouldn't hate you."  _ I'd just make sure you didn't rest in peace. _

Waxer huffed a laugh. He understood what Boil meant. What they had wasn't a ton. Shaky promises from the Senate, armor that didn't do its job well, cheaply made clothes that might as well be a second skin.

But they had each other.

And it had gotten them this far, what's one more adventure?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I would say I'm sorry for the late update but 1) there was a slight emergency 2) I purposefully didn't make a set schedule so I didn't have to feel guilty about late updates. Sorry it's short, but I should be getting more on a regular schedule now.


	5. Chapter 5

Jesse had said they've only been in there for two tendays. Rex was pretty certain it had been for years. No news came to them, just meals and guards taunting them. And the hammering on the wall, assurance that Fives was alive. Rex had tried the same idea on the wall they shared with Cody, but when nothing came back to him, Rex hated how he was envious that Cody might have died. But the guards still delivered meals to his cell, usually flipping the plate but still. It was a sign that there was at least something was alive in that cell that they still needed to feed.

Rex refused to acknowledge that traitorous jealous voice that spoke to him when he thought his older brother was dead. He loved him, but Rex found it hard not to wish that the Mandolarians would grow a pair and kill them rather than wait for their deaths. 

Waxer, and subsequently Boil, made their presence and lives known. Guards would try to stop them from doing Force knows what, only to be met with familiar abuse. But there was a reason Cody kept them together. In all their bickering and shared pain, hope was laced through. Even deep in his own spiral, Rex found himself grasping into hope at the sound of them again and again. 

But how much was hope worth in their situation?

It wasn't like the Force ever looked in favor at them.

"Rex?" A familiar voice broke him from his spiral. He almost thought he dreamt it, until he looked up and saw blue eyes he had missed greatly.

"You know him?" Bo-Katan asked, her displeasure poorly hidden in her voice.

"He's my friend." Ahsoka said without hesitation. And it warmed Rex's heart to hear that even after all this time separated. All sense of ability to speak left him. Jesse, having awoken silently, gripped Rex's arm in question. 

"Him and his other clones barged in a month back and made some pretty big claims." 

"Others?" Ahsoka asked right as from down the path, Waxer shouted:

"You'd find we're telling the truth if you did what we said to do!" A very soft  _ ow _ followed in typical Waxer and Boil fashion. Still his eyes couldn't leave her. The last he did, Rex thought she was gone forever.

"We have six of your 'friends' that deserted their own army and tried to claim that they are Mandalorians." Bo-Katan rolled her eyes at the last part.

"Rex? Is that true?"

"The entire war is a lie." His voice cracked from disuse, not much to say in the last couple of tendays. "We have- well,  _ had _ for us- chips in our heads that were..." Flashes of memories burned bright. Three knocks on the wall broke him out, Rex scrambled to reply. Jesse, fortunately, was able to continue.

"Tup killed a jedi and they sent him to Kamino. Fives tagged along and found out about the chips." Ahsoka's gaze drifted back to Rex as Jesse spoke. Her once esteemed friend, now pounding at a wall with a desperation she had never seen. "They're designed to make us become the meat droids everyone thinks we are and kill the jedi." But that brought her attention right back to Jesse. "So we said no."

The silence tasted like poisoned whiskey between the three, not even the knocking dared try to break it. Rex could hardly stand her gaze when it returned to him, ducking his head so he could pretend not to see the heart shattering inside. He still could hear her steadying breath, just as she did right before she jumped into battle.

“Let them out.” And there was his Commander, beneath her youthful appearance was years of war. Was the need to fight for what was right. Was the need to be there for those who had stood by her side for so long.

"You can't just go making demands-" Bo-Katan stood her ground, only to get steely glare and a finger to her shoulder.

"-You came to me for help. You want it? Let my friends go. You have some of the galaxy's finest c-" She stopped herself, took a glance at her friends, before starting over- "you have some of the galaxy's finest warriors locked away. I've seen every one of these men in battle and it's not only a waste of their talent but of my time if you don't let them out." Pride swelled Rex’s chest, it threatened to spill from his eyes. His little commander had to grow up too quickly, but nothing beat seeing her standing in confidence. "If you really want to take out Maul, we're going to need their help."

* * *

_ This isn't like Kamino,  _ Fives promised himself, walking pressed against Rex's side.

_ This isn't like Kamino. _

_ But you are being marched away, aren't you? Everything in you says that when situations are similar, so are the tactics. You could grab that blaster from the guard- _

_ This isn't Kamino.  _ He squeezed his eyes shut, letting his captain lead him. Distant voices argued and still they were marched on.

Even when the first drops of rain landed on his face, he refused to open his eyes. For a moment, the lifeline of a hand slipped and with it his control-

_ -You are not safe. You are not safe. Tup needs you. You killed Tup. Tup. Tup. Let me in! Let me in!- _

_ - _ and Rex's arm rested around his shoulders. He muttered a silent thanks, his voice still harsh from days and nights of screaming nightmares blending with reality. Fives didn't know if it was heard by anyone, he dared not open his eyes. At least in the darkness, he could trust what he saw there.

"Fives? You can open your eyes now." He didn't know how long they walked, how long Rex had to lead him simply because he refused to look, but he inhaled a shaky breath and willed himself to look.

There was Rex.

There was Jesse.

Waxer.

Boil.

Ahsoka.

Cody-

"Ahso-" he croaked out quizzically, his throat protested him finishing. A glass was pressed into his hands and an order to drink it shortly was given.

"It's good to see you, Fives."

_ At least one verd'ika made it out. Tup. Tup. Tup.- _

"- Fives, hey, hey, hey. We're safe here." Fives found his place, perfectly in the arms of his brothers. Gasping panic and grasping hands clung to Rex and in return, Fives was enveloped by indiscernible arms. He could feel Rex talking, the low vibrations in his chest gave him focus. A place he could start defining what was true. 

But he couldn't get  _ him _ out of his mind. He hadn't been able to in tendays. 

_ Ni partayli, gar darasuum _ was as much of a comfort as it was a curse. 

* * *

Waxer wasn't that close to Fives as the former 501st members. Didn't mean that his heart didn't break when he bursted into tears and mutterings again. He silently volunteered to start grabbing mattresses, Force knows clones don't do well separated. Jesse nodded as he took the shocked Ahsoka to the kitchen area of their apartment prison. It was for political dignitaries for protection from assassination, and now it was their temporary home with round-the-rotation guards. Better than their cells, which was all he could say. Meant they weren't alone anymore.

Except Cody.

The moment Cody stepped out of his cell, Waxer knew something was off. His worry only grew when Cody avoided being touched, jerked his shoulder away when Boil tried to touch him. It wasn't that Cody was touch desperate, but there had always been little moments. As his lieutenant, Waxer knew the signs. The days following the Umbara disaster, Boil had his work cut out for him trying to wrangle both an evading Waxer and the side of Cody that only came out when Rex's life was in danger to sit down and eat. Brown eyes lined by unspoken endless apologies that drilled them into Waxer wherever Cody looked didn't even bother to try to crack a smile.

And it was the same eyes Waxer caught a glimpse of when he started searching the rooms for mattresses, having found that Cody already claimed one.

He didn't want to leave him like this. Rex was busy with comforting Fives. He would have been the next best choice. But any attempt at words died when Cody turned away from him.

Later, he will do something about him later. There were still mattresses to grab.

It nearly felt like a party. With ease, Boil, Jesse, and Waxer rearranged the furniture and mattresses so that everyone including Ashoka could lounge in a halfhearted circle with snacks and jokes to share between them. As some of their former commander, she was familiar with the practice. As unspokenly by all, she was their little sibling and her presence only made sense. It took time but when Boil made a pretty colorful joke about Ahsoka's new reluctant ally, Fives wheezed a chuckle, uncurling himself the side of Rex to accept the cup of water. The heavy tension of the last couple of tendays for everyone eased just a bit as the raunchy jokes came harder back-to-back. Ahsoka didn't commit on Fives' state, Jesse tried to catch her up with as little as they knew. Just as Rex didn't commit on Cody's absence. Waxer promised himself he would ask for Rex's and Boil's help later, but for now he could rest his head on Boil's shoulder and feel nearly at peace.

"Ahsoka, don't mean to bring down the mood," Jesse did anyways after Fives was sure asleep halfway on top of Rex's lap, "but what the  _ kriff _ did you mean by 'take out Maul' and needing our help?"

That certainly woke Waxer right up.

Ahsoka sighed as if she was preparing for a fray. The silent calm before the storm. "Bo-Katan asked for my help with taking him out since he just... disappeared one night."

There was not a comforting word in that.

"Sounds... like the same  _ kriffing _ crap we always get pulled into." Boil reached for another cracker.

"Yeah and I'm sorry to drag you all into this." Ahsoka sounded honest to say the least. "I thought you all knew because it was only a few rotations before you arrived that he left the throne."

Every word she said was making it worse.

"So now Death Watch and New Mandalorians are trying to play nice with each other until they can get rid of Maul." She huffed a bitter laugh. "Bo-Katan is only Acting Mand'alor because she was Satine's sister and the New Mandalorians have her son under their care."

_ Surprised there was room with that giant stick in her ass to have a kid _ , Waxer thought, causing Ahsoka to choke on her drink and shoot him a glare.

"Didn't need that image." She muttered miserably. Waxer just smiled at her, delighted that she was even here to begin with. With a roll of her eyes, she continued "but now that I've convinced them it's imperative to look into the-" she held up a chip, just in case Fives' panic would return seeing aloud "-I really think you guys might have a shot at full citizenships here."

Waxer thought loudly of his men. He thought loudly of Helix and of carrying Cody over his shoulder to the medbay. He thought of sitting around a fire, drinking nearly pure rubbing alcohol. He thought loudly of Screech and all the shinies and the pride he had of them.

He refused to put the truth out there. He refused to let Ahsoka know none of them planned on surviving. 

" _ Karking _ hell, it doesn't even feel real." Jesse said thankfully. "I'm gonna shower and process all this." He took the empty bowls with him when he left.

"Despite not being able to do anything for Force knows how long," whispered Rex as he gently slid Fives off his side and onto the mattress proper, "I'm tired. We should all rest. Sounds like we have a hell of a battle ahead of us."

And like that, they avoided letting Ahsoka know the truth. From letting her know something was wrong with all of them. She was their little sister after all, it was all of their jobs to protect her. Even if she had the impulsiveness of her former master. Sleep came easy to Waxer, knowing at least they had a chance. 


	6. Meanwhile...

_ When you get put down as fourth in charge of your general's emotions, you never expect to actually be in charge at any given moment. It was a joke position to begin with. So when Kix found himself in Skywalker’s office, he hoped that wherever Rex and Jesse were hiding was deep enough to where he couldn't find them. He should have been more worried when Fives went away, but he figured that someone would take place as third. But then he returned and the manhunt that ended in both Rex and Jesse (and rumors of Cody? Along with Boil and Waxer?) disappearing, so now he was here, doing what should be Rex's job and consulting (more like consoling) General Skywalker. _

_ "Sir, I think you should talk to the Council again." His general, graceful as ever, lifted his head up from despair. _

_ "You know what they said. Nothing would change." Anakin threw his hands up in the air, dropping his voice into a familiar gravel. "Wait for the Sith, we must." His impersonation of Master Yoda was dead on, which left Kix wondering how many times he had mocked the old creature. _

_ "Permission to speak freely, sir?" Kix wasn't Rex. He wasn't Jesse. He certainly wasn't Fives. _

_ He was a Force-damned medic. And sometimes the best course to heal a bone was to break it again. _

_ Skywalker nodded. _

_ "The Sith already have done something." Kix's training told him to breathe deeply, to remember control. Kix's heart, however, refused. "They have attached mental shackles to all of my brothers and the Jedi Council wants to  _ wait _? The evidence is right in front of them and they basically said that the risk Fives went through to get that information and the fact your top two command aren't here isn't enough. If I were to go out to the 501st and tell them that it is a matter of time before we all try to kill you, they  _ will _ try to stop it themselves first." He has lied on the reports before, made sure that certain worrying statements never made it on file. So with full heartbreaking honesty he could say, "Unless you want to be the general of a bunch of dead men, I suggest you talk to the Council again." _

Repression causes depression _ , that was his little rhyme to get shinies to talk. The 501st may be a deadly force on the battlefield, but that came at a price. A price Kix paid in tears. So, in that spirit of his own words, Kix continued. "The Jedi believe that all life is important, then how come ours isn't? Because I was trained to defend the Republic and the knowledge that the entire GAR is a ticking time bomb makes me think the best course of action if you refuse to talk to them again is to let the men take care of the situation as they see fit." _

_ Kix knew, deep down, that this wasn't Skywalker's fault. He knew that it was a combination of recent losses and his own training that made him hesitate. But Kix was tired. _

_ No, tired didn't even begin to cover it. _

_ The end to the war could be within their grasps if they just got off their ass and reached for it. His brothers could be free. He could be free. No general nor captain knew the specific heartache that was being a medic. They never had to hold a young one's hand as with struggling breath explain all their dreams for after the war- to have to feed into those dreams until the young one faded. Kix has done it more times than he could count. Waiting for the Sith to make their move made Kix want to join them. _

_ "Thank you, Kix." It was barely a whisper. "I... need to comm Kenobi. You are dismissed." _

_ "Am I telling them the news, sir?" Skywalker winced at the title. _

_ "Not yet." He refused to look at his medic, "you brought up some good points that I feel the Council hadn't considered." _

_ Kix nodded and left. The door closed behind him, but not before he heard the equally exasperated voice of Kenobi saying “Oh good, I was just about to comm you.” _


	7. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Description of dissociation, be advised

There was a sort of familiarity in their new routine.

They would wake up. Breakfast was eaten together in mostly silence. Rex and Cody would be dragged away with Ahsoka for meetings, leaving Boil, Waxer, Jesse and Fives alone in their new prison. There hadn’t been any real motive to move their mattresses from the main room, which Fives was eternally grateful for.

What he wasn't grateful for was all the free time they had. The cell had been... hell. Too long he was left with his betraying thoughts with only knocking for company. This apartment was hell-petit. True, Fives was never short of anyone to help ground him. But in the stillness, his mind refused to stop walking treacherous paths.

But Fives had Jesse now. He had Boil and Waxer as backup. And when they returned to the apartment, Fives found Rex curling up to him just as much as he did to Rex. He wasn't alone.

But in the quiet of the nights, in the repetitiveness of the days, there were ghosts.

So when there was a knock at the door, despite the familiar panic, Fives was excited to see the slight man standing there with a polite nervous smile. "I'm Mr. Wren," their guest introduced himself as Boil let him in, "I am here on behalf of the Council to get to know you."

Fives could easily tell that was partially a lie, as he suspected the others to notice. Mandalore was no different than the Republic in their views of clones, so why this man was trying to act like that wasn't so was beyond him. But neither he nor the others brought it up, just stared at the man like tookas waiting to see if a potential prey is alive. Not that Fives thought him capable of being a danger to the four clones. Even in his hair-triggering state, he was still an ARC trooper, so in a way, that only made him more of a threat. Plus Mr. Wren was probably not much older than General Skywalker, there was a youth to him that Fives almost envied.

~~ Tup never looked that young. Tup. Tup. Tup- ~~

"You can call me Ulrich, however." None of them were going to, old habits died... never. But the sentiment was nice, to say the least.

"Why is the Council taking interest in us now?" Boil asked, returning to his spot on the gathered mattresses beside Waxer. Mr. Wren took a careful seat on the chair just outside their "nest."

"Half of them think you all are plotting how to overthrow Mandalore and the other half think you're not smart enough to think in general." His smile didn't waver, but it eased. He was used to being prey, it seemed. "I am here to prove them both wrong."

"How so?" Jesse spoke up. He kept his arm around Fives' shoulder, ready to throw him behind and attack if it came to it. Fives hated needing the reassurance. Fives loved the reassurance.

"I think you all were telling the truth." For just a moment, Mr. Wren's smile slipped a little. Whether it was really good acting or the weight of belief in their words laid heavy on his mind, Fives couldn't tell but either way appreciated. Even if it was just a lie, he thought it would be a good move to show the hint of understanding. "And while Mandalore isn't on the best of terms with the Republic, if it is the only thing in the way of some greater evil, I would like to do what I can to prevent it." Behind his square glasses, dark eyes sparkled with determination. "Which means proving to the Council that you are telling the truth."

_ Telling the truth _ , Fives pondered on that. Why was he being so careful with his words? True, Mr. Wren was on the Council himself and probably spent most of his day shifting through words and meanings. But they were just clones.

"How do you plan on doing that?" Boil asked. "They seem like the...  _ reasonable  _ type." Fives couldn't stop the silent chuckle shaking his frame. Especially not when Mr. Wren began laughing as well. 

"Getting to know you." The earnesty bled from his voice. "Learning about you as both a people and as individuals."

_ As both a people and as individuals.  _ There was no quick looking away. No stutter of his smile. No falter in his posture. No lie in his words.

Fives could almost feel himself smile with renewed hope.

* * *

Mr. Wren returned every couple of days, sometimes with questions and other times with datapads. Even though they were no longer connected to the holonet, it was a change in pace and Fives found himself immersed in several holonovels for entire days before their guest had to take the datapad away for the day. He would leave right when Rex, Ahsoka, and Cody returned from no doubt the same mess Mr. Wren took great pride missing out. Cody would go hide away in his room and Rex would silently claim it was his turn to hold Fives. He had told his old captain that he was forgiven many times in hushed whispers for the little prank back on the ship, but as the days continued, Fives was beginning to suspect that Rex's claim of holding him was less for Fives comfort and more for Rex's.

But just like his older brother Cody, Rex refused to say anything about what was going on in his mind.

Fives wasn't going to be the one to push it. He knew Jesse wouldn't either. Boil and Waxer were having more frequent conversations on how to handle Cody when the former COs were out of the apartment, an anomaly Fives was growing more and more worried about with the absurdity of their plans. Clones had an understanding (most of the time) to let others talk in their own time. To force someone to talk was like forcing them to take off their armor. Leaving them exposed and raw. Many have died refusing to have ever talked and that was something many had grown to accept with a broken heart. Fives didn't want Rex to fall down the same path, but he was hardly the person who could help.

But... Mr. Wren could help potentially.

Force, Fives was going to piss everyone off. Like really piss everyone off. Clones didn't get outside help. Mainly because no one offered but also there was the fact that being a clone was... an experience like no other. Asking for help from a non-clone, even if they're willing, was like training a tooka to use a vibroblade.

~~ Echo tried that once. ~~

A small voice reminded him of the dangers of that, of the scars he still carries from that. It could work, in theory. But so many things could go so very wrong. Including being wrong about Mr. Wren. If he turned out to be just another asshole who wanted to use them to further his own agenda, then Fives would lose all hope.

~~ To say he had any hope after the loss of Echo and Tup. Tup. Tup- ~~

He had to believe Mr. Wren was telling the truth. For all their sakes. For all their lives.

* * *

"- you'd have to ask Waxer or Boil for Gold Boys' Hooch recipe but Torrent was actually drinkable." Fives pretended to be okay. That this was normal. That he wasn't a prisoner for trying to save the galaxy. He had to for all their sakes. It was nice to believe in this little lie, even if he still wore the well worn prison garb they were all given. It was at least softer than his usual blacks.

"Did every battalion have their own brew?" Mr. Wren had been fascinated with every detail they fed him, no matter how insignificant. The four who didn't have to deal with the Council's bickering decided it was best to stick with the bearable details of their lives. The good things, none of the things that "made the civvies look at us in horror or satisfaction" were Boil's exact words.

"More or less. 79's was more of a bargaining station than an actual bar. Bring in a bottle, you get to pick one of the other battalion's in return to drink. Only civvies paid with credits."

"That..." Mr. Wren chewed on his bottom lip, a habit Fives noticed when he was about to say something that caused him trouble. He never forced any of them to comment but it was as if the burden of the words alone were enough to give him pause.

But instead, he sighed, deciding against whatever he was going to say. "At least you were doing it at an establishment and not just on the streets. I'm nearly certain that Torrent's brew would kill a teen." He laughed softly. 

“Probably not, Mr. Wren. I’m only nine and I'm still alive.” Fives joked. And quickly regretted as his acquaintance’s face gradually fell as realization struck him again and again. "Oh no."

"You're nine!" Caught somewhere between a question and a scream, so loud Fives feared the guards outside might burst in. "How are you only nine!"

"Accelerated aging." And with a sigh, Fives felt himself fall into the empty place between Fives and ARC-5555. He couldn't stop it. Just for a little but, Fives was nearly human but...

Tup. Tup. Tup.

The name repeated, echoing with each beat of his racing heart.

Tup. Tup. Tup.

He failed him like he was failing his brothers now.

Tup. Tup. Tup.

Mr. Wren asked another question and someone that sounded like Fives answered. There were  _ millions _ that sounded like Fives, who was he to say he was Fives anyways?

Someone that sounded like Fives but worried held him. His acquaintance sounded worried as well, somewhere in there was an apology.

Hands not his but felt like his own rested on his shoulders. They held him close to a body that felt like his body but was not his. There were  _ millions _ that had the same body as Fives. As ARC-5555.  _ Millions _ and still more to come. He saw all those little cadets, trapped but at least safe from the outside galaxy.  _ Millions  _ of eyes like his stared down at him, already hopeless and dead inside.

Another face in the crowd, he was. Another experiment gone too horribly right.

And Fives and ARC-5555 were gone.

Another face lost in a crowd.

  
  



End file.
